[UPDATED] Jade Baguna, an alumnus of the Western Philippines University (WPU) and one of the top scorers of the 2021 Licensure Examination for Social Workers (LESW), was one of the highlighted legacies presented by the administration at a recent summit to sum up President Rodrigo Duterte’s six-year leadership of the country.
He was invited to represent the Tertiary Education Subsidy (TES) grantees at the two-day “Duterte Legacy Summit” at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City on May 30 and 31, 2022.
Baguna, who placed eighth in the 2021 LESW, discussed his struggles in pursuit of his dreams during the summit. He obtained his tertiary education with the help of government scholarship through RA No. 10931, an Act Promoting Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education that was passed in 2017 under the Duterte administration.
In his speech at the summit, he described his experiences as a poor student who had to help his parents sell vegetables and kakanin (snacks) to eke out a living, who had to walk three kilometers to and from school, and who had to make do with a five-peso daily allowance in high school, all of which inspired him to complete his education and find a better job to support his family.
“Kumuha po ako ng Bachelor of Science in Social Work sa Western Philippines University sa Palawan dahil batid ko na sa prospesyong ito mas makakabahagi po ako ng totoong serbisyo para sa tao. Sabi ko nga, I will not work for the people but I will work with the people,” he added.
WPU with its president Dr. Julie Hope Timotea P. Evina is the only state university that was invited to the summit. “It is indeed an honor to be invited in this event because WPU is the only SUC that was given the chance to be part of the summit. Jade’s success story as a TES grantee is so inspiring and we are very proud of his achievement” Evina said.
Baguna is now a Social Work faculty member in the College of Arts and Sciences at WPU. He is from Teneguiban, El Nido, Palawan, born to Robert Cabailo Baguna and Imie Rodriguez Baguna.
